Roborace First Autonomous Racecar

By Mike O'Nill1 Sep 2016

Self-driving cars are a part of science fiction no more. Even though models of such type are still underworked and they have not made a way to the market yet, their production is in the process trying to improve every aspect of such autos. Nevertheless, races and competitions among them are a part of today. So, we are ready to give you more details about the first autonomous car to participate in a different competition.

If you still think that racing needs a driver, you are on the wrong planet. A company from Britain tends to prove things different. They have created a new prototype to participate in racing of such kind. To begin with, this model goes as DevBot. This is the name it will bear thought its racing life. As far as we can judge from the name of this auto it is created as the first model in the series of robotic cars which can be self-driven.

Driverless Racecar

The company which has created this futuristic concept is known as Roborace. Their DevBot is still a prototype but its focus is to demonstrate abilities of autonomous autos and what they can really do. Their plan is to launch series of races where cars of such kind will participate and compete with each other. It is supposed that this plan will come to life in 2016 or in 2017. The idea is to make the part of Formula E. If you do not know, this is the championship where electric cars which are driven manually participate.

To be honest, DevBot looks quite untypical for a finished car. Some may find it to primitive and too futuristic at the same time. On top of the body of this auto, you can see standardized cabin which is made in compliance with all the recent safety standards. Thus, a person can take a ride in it. There is also an opportunity to drive it manually in case it is necessary.

According to Roborace engineers, such approach gives them an opportunity to understand the way computer makes decisions and analyses situation on track. Thus, they can make a step towards setting their DevBot on the road. As for other parts of the car, they all are built manually. Among them is powertrain of the electric type, different kinds of sensors, smart computer along with technologies of communication. These technologies are not finished yet. Since they are in process so far their purpose and features will be disclosed closer to the end of 2016.

Roborace claims that it has already tested their DevBot secretly on airfields and on the racing tracks in the country. The car has shown fairly good results in self-driving aspects.

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